In The News for Jan. 11: What message does the PM have for Mexico?

The two leaders are to sign a declaration on Indigenous co-operation before Trudeau holds a news conference before departing for Ottawa.

If Tuesday was any indication, the afternoon schedule may need to be flexible.

Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden stared at their feet as the famously long-winded López Obrador spent nearly 30 minutes answering a single question during a marathon news conference at the National Palace in Mexico City.

Speaking entirely in Spanish, he acknowledged at one point that he’d been talking for too long — and when he was done, Biden wasted no time wrapping things up.

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Also this …

A report of a suspect vehicle in Saskatchewan’s capital hours after a stabbing rampage on a First Nation some 300 kilometres away suddenly pulled city officers into the investigation and kept residents on edge for days.

The sighting “swiftly brought us into the unexpected storm,” Regina police Chief Evan Bray would later say in an email to the police service.

Emails obtained by The Canadian Press under freedom of information laws give some insight into how Regina police responded following the stabbings on Sept. 4, which left 11 dead and 18 injured on the James Smith Cree Nation and in the nearby village of Weldon, Sask.

The suspect in the attacks, 32-year-old Myles Sanderson, died in police custody Sept. 7. Police have not confirmed whether he was in Regina during his time on the run.

A truck he was suspected of driving after the killings was found in the small community of Crystal Springs, 65 kilometres southwest of the First Nation. Sanderson was eventually spotted outside a home in nearby Wakaw, leading to a highway chase and his arrest.

But a sense of unease washed over Regina during the manhunt and city police brought in extra resources. Emails show about 40 Regina police employees were part of the response, including detectives and additional patrol officers.

Early on Sept. 5, Bray posted on social media that the suspects remained at large, despite “ongoing, relentless” efforts of officers overnight. But, the next day, emails show Regina’s police chief had information that Myles Sanderson was not in the city.

“Can you give me a sense of the ability to communicate the fact we believe he may no longer be in Regina? Is that something we can say?” Bray wrote in an email on the morning of Sept. 6.

The redacted correspondence does not explain what that information was. But the emails show a superintendent saying the police chief should not release that information as there was “no visual on subject.”

Later that afternoon, however, Bray went against that advice and posted a video on social media saying, “we’ve received information that is leading us to believe he may no longer be in this community.”

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

Storm-ravaged California scrambled to clean up and repair widespread damage as the lashing rain eased in many areas, although the north could see thundershowers today and another powerful weather front was expected to hit the state Friday.

At least 17 people have died in the storms battering the state. The figure is likely to rise, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday during a visit to the scenic town of Capitola on the Santa Cruz coast that was hard hit by high surf and flooding creek waters last week.

A pickup truck driver and a motorcyclist were killed early Tuesday in the San Joaquin Valley when a tree that had been struck by lightning fell on them, authorities said. More than half of California’s 58 counties were declared disaster areas, the governor said.

The latest storm that began Monday was one in a series that began late last month and repairing the damage may cost more than $1 billion, said Adam Smith, a disaster expert with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Los Angeles Times reported.

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

China has renewed its threat to attack Taiwan, warning foreign politicians who interact with the self-governing island that they are “playing with fire.”

A spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office said it was recommitted in the new year to “smashing plots for Taiwan independence.”

The self-governing democracy separated from mainland China in 1949.

The comments by Ma Xiaoguang at a biweekly news conference follow a string of visits by foreign politicians to Taiwan. Beijing sees these visits as an affront to its global presence.

Meanwhile, Taiwan’s military is staging drills intended to reassure the public ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday of its ability to counter China’s threats.

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On this day in 1922 …

The discovery of insulin, used in the treatment of diabetes, was announced in Toronto. It was discovered by a research team composed of Frederick Banting, Charles Best, James Collip and J.J. Macleod.

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In entertainment …

Several big Canadian names walked away empty-handed at the Golden Globes Tuesday night as the film and TV awards made a return after a year off the air.

Famed Ontario-born filmmaker James Cameron lost in the best director category for “Avatar: The Way of Water,” which went to Steven Spielberg for helming “The Fabelmans.”

Spielberg’s semi-autobiographical film also snagged best drama motion picture.

Toronto’s Sarah Polley was also up for best screenplay for her female-led drama “Women Talking,” but fell short to Martin McDonagh and “The Banshees of Inisherin.”

Other Canadian contenders who lost out in the three-hour telecast included the Toronto-set coming-of-age adventure “Turning Red” by Domee Shi in the best-animated film category, which went to Guillermo del Toro’s “Pinocchio.”

In what many considered an upset, Brendan Fraser did not win for his leading role in Darren Aronofsky’s film “The Whale,” a prize that was picked up by Austin Butler from “Elvis.”

Other Canadian nominees that lost out in the TV categories include Seth Rogen and Martin Short.

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Did you see this?

Premier Danielle Smith won’t commit to using Alberta’s controversial sovereignty act to rebut looming federal “just transition” legislation, which she calls an existential threat to her province’s bedrock oil and gas industry.

Smith says there are still unanswered questions and other options to address the federal proposal, but Alberta won’t allow its oil and gas industry to be phased out of existence.

She says Alberta is on board with reducing greenhouse gas emissions but it must be done in a way that allows her province to still meet the needs of global energy demand.

Smith has long accused Ottawa of interfering with Alberta’s resource development, and last month her government passed a constitutionally questionable sovereignty bill that grants it the power to direct agencies to flout federal laws and initiatives deemed to not be in its interests.

Last week, federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said Ottawa would move ahead this spring with legislation to provide the framework for the transition plan.

Ottawa says the plan is not about shutting down oil and gas but providing a training and incentive blueprint for workers to make a seamless transition as the world moves to a less carbon-intensive economy.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 11, 2023

The Canadian Press

by Canadian Press

In The News for Jan. 11: What message does the PM have for Mexico?

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